1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a Vendors' Structural Complex that consolidates several vendors of retail goods and services such as groceries, pharmaceuticals, liquor, key duplication, video rentals, photography development, dry cleaning and laundry, and popular local take-out restaurants, or a single vendor that provides these various goods and services, in a single convenient drive-up Complex.
2) Description of the Related Art
Various types of structural complexes have been employed in the prior art by vendors of retail goods and services for storing goods, performing services and offering the sale of goods and services to consumers. These structural complexes range from smaller facilities with drive-up windows used by fast food restaurants and photo development services, to enclosed shopping malls combining a variety of different retail outlets offering a large variety of goods and services to patrons of the shopping mall. These different types of structural complexes have long been used by vendors of goods and services despite common disadvantages associated with many of these facilities.
A substantial disadvantage encountered by many vendors of goods and services that own or rent a structure or warehouse to store goods, offer their goods for sale, or perform services for consumers is the large cost involved in maintaining the structure or warehouse. Conventional structural facilities used in the sale of consumer goods and services commonly require a substantial area of real estate for the structural facility itself, and a parking lot large enough to accommodate a reasonable number of vehicles of consumers who will visit the facility. Reducing the costs involved in maintaining the structural facility and its surrounding real estate would contribute significantly to reducing the overall costs involved in doing business.
Another disadvantage often encountered by the retailers of goods is the losses they incur through the shoplifting of their goods. Providing a shopping facility that substantially reduces shoplifting would also contribute significantly to reducing costs.
Vendors operating large grocery stores or department stores often find themselves disadvantaged when competing with smaller convenience markets for consumers who are willing to sacrifice a large product selection for convenience. Vendors operating convenience markets often find themselves disadvantaged when competing with the larger grocery and department stores for customers who are willing to sacrifice convenience for a larger product or service selection. Providing a shopping facility that presents a large variety of goods and services to consumers, and enables consumers to receive their desired goods and services in a fast and convenient manner would attract both types of consumers.
Additional disadvantages encountered by most vendors of goods and services include the large start-up costs involved in providing the vendor's goods and services to consumers, the cost involved in maintaining a work force to present the vendor's goods or perform their services for consumers, and the cost involved in advertising and promoting the vendor's individual goods and services. Reducing any or all of these costs would contribute significantly to the success of any business.
The present invention overcomes disadvantages encountered by vendors of retail goods and services by providing a unique Vendors' Structural Complex that brings together vendors of various goods and services, or houses a single vendor of various goods and services in one complex, and correspondingly reduces start-up costs, overhead costs, the costs involved in maintaining a large labor force and in advertising and promoting the individual goods and services of the vendors, and reduces losses incurred by shoplifting. The Vendors' Structural Complex is also easily accessible to consumers from their vehicles, providing a wide selection of goods and services offered by the vendors with drive-up convenience.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a unique and novel Vendors' Structural Complex that combines a single large vendor or several vendors of a variety of different goods and services in one facility and enables each of the vendors to lower their start-up costs, their overhead costs, their advertising and promotional costs, the costs involved in maintaining a large labor force, and substantially eliminates the shoplifting of goods, while providing consumers with the convenience of drive-up shopping and a wide selection of goods and services comparative to that provided by large shopping malls.